Why Not, God?

James 4:3 ESV

You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.

INTRODUCTION

WHAT A BEAUTIFUL JOB IT WOULD BE FOR BELIEVERS IF NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENED, WHERE IT HAPPENED OR

HOW IT HAPPENED ALL WE HAD TO DO WAS LOOK TO GOD FOR GOD TO GIVE US THE STRENGTH AND WISDOM TO

SPREAD THE WONDER OF GOD’S ANSWER OF “YES” TO EVERYTHING......

-YES FOR OUR OWN LIVES AND OUR POSSIBILITIES

-YES FOR THE LIVES OF THOSE WE LOVE AND THOSE WHO LOVE US

-YES FOR THE ONES WHO STILL STAND ON THE BRINK OF BELIEVING......FOLKS WHO WANT TO SEE SIGNS AS

DRAMATIC SHOWS OF GOD’S AWESOME POWER

-YES TO THOSE WHO HAVE YET TO BELIEVE AND SEEM ON A PERMANENT PATH OF UNBELIEF

BUT THE PROBLEM OF GOD’S ABILITY AND WILL TO SAY NO IS A PROBLEM AS OLD AS BIBLE TIMES....AND IT’S A

PROBLEM THAT REMAINS ONE THAT WILL NOT BE SOLVED AS LONG AS GOD IS DIVINE AND WE ARE THE CREATURES

MADE BY GOD’S OWN DESIGN…PERHAPS IT WAS THE GREAT PROPHET ISAIAH WHO SAID IT BEST.....

Isaiah 55:8–9 NRSV

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

ONE OF THE GREAT, GO-TO RESOURCES FOR INSPIRATION, GUIDEPOSTS MAGAZINE TURNS TO A

PASTOR/WRITER/LITERARY AGENT NAMED BOB HOSTETLER WHO WRITES WIDELY FOR THEM ON THE SUBJECT OF

PRAYER......AND HE BOILED GOD’S “NO” TO PRAYERS DOWN TO THREE THINGS WE MIGHT SEARCH OUT IF OUR

ANSWER FROM GOD FEELS LIKE A “NO”...... “NO” AFTERALL, IS AN ANSWER TO PRAYER TOO.....AMEN?

PERHAPS NOT THE PREFERRED ANSWER, BUT A BONA FIDE ANSWER NONETHELESS......

THE STORY IS TOLD OF A BOY IN A PICKLE OF A SITUATION......A BOY WHO TURNED TO PRAYER

A fifth grade boy who had heard a sermon on persistence in prayer was praying by himself in his room one

night. As his dad passed his door, he heard the boy praying over and over again, “Tokyo, Tokyo, Tokyo.” The

next day, the dad asked his son what he was doing. The boy replied that he had given the wrong answer on

a test for the capital of Mexico, and he was praying that Tokyo would become the capital of Mexico.

UNFORTUNATELY FOR THE YOUNG BOY PRAYING....AND FOR THE WORLD....THE ANSWER WAS NO....TOKYO WILL

NEVER BECOME THE CAPITAL OF MEXICO…AMEN?

BOB HOSTETLER’S HELPFUL CONSIDERATIONS AROUND GOD’S NO

THE LEGENDARY FAITHFULNESS OF MOSES WAS MET LATE IN HIS LIFE WITH

ANGUISH.....THERE HE STOOD ON A

BLUFF OVERLOOKING THE PROMISED LAND, THE LAND OF MILK AND

HONEY........THERE ON THAT BLUFF MOSES

PRAYED TO THE LORD OUR GOD.....ACCORDING TO DEUTERONOMY 3:25

Deuteronomy 3:25 NRSV

Let me cross over to see the good land beyond the Jordan, that good hill country and the Lebanon.”

AND GOD’S ANSWER WAS NO.....BUT BEFORE WE ASK, ALONG WITH MOSES, WITH ANGUISHED HEARTS OURSELVES,

WHY NOT GOD?

MAYBE THERE IS SOMETHING ELSE TO DO.....BOB’S PRAYERFUL ADVICE, IS THIS:

#1 - “MAKE SURE YOUR HEART IS RIGHT”........IF GOD’S ANSWER FEELS AS THOUGH IT’S SLOW IN COMING THIS IS

THE STEP THAT IS THE STEP OF REFLECTION AND INTROSPECTION.......THIS IS THE STEP THAT CALLS FOR US TO

SLOW DOWN IN OUR SPIRIT AND JUST MAKE SURE......AND DOUBLY SURE OUR HEARTS ARE READY NO MATTER

WHAT CHALLENGES MAY BE AHEAD IN GOD’S ANSWER TO OUR PRAYERS.....

CHAPTER 4 OF THE BOOK OF JAMES IS ALL ABOUT THE MOTIVES OF BELIEVERS, BELOVEDS......IT’S ABOUT OUR

SUBMISSION TO THE WAYS OF GOD…AND WE CAN ONLY GET TO SUBMISSION BY LOOKING INWARD AND

REFLECTING ON WHERE WE ARE.....AND CONSISTENTLY, IF NOT ALSO PERSISTENTLY MAKING SURE OUR HEART IS

RIGHT, THAT OUR HEARTS ARE WIDE OPEN TO GOD’S DESIRES FOR US.......

#2ndly - BOB ENCOURAGES US TO LOOK MORE CLOSELY AT THE PROPHET ELIJAH........AND GOD’S TIMING

Few names in the Bible shine as brightly as the prophet Elijah's. After he routed

the prophets of the false god Baal on Mt. Carmel, he took off for the desert and,

after a full day’s journey, came to rest under a tree.

There, Elijah–the great champion of God, the great man of faith and prophet of

Israel–prayed, “Let me die.” God said "no."

Why? Apparently God still had things for Elijah to do (1 Kings 19:15-17). And

God did eventually answer Elijah’s prayer, in a manner of speaking, by

suddenly taking him up to heaven in chariots of fire (2 Kings 2:11, NIV).

Sometimes, when GOD’S answer is no, you might consider whether God said no

because the timing wasn’t right...and find hope and encouragement in

knowing that GOD knows best.

TO ASK GOD WHY NOT FOR ELIJAH IS TO QUESTION GOD’S TIMING......SOMETIMES GOD’S NO ISN’T A NO FOREVER,

BELOVEDS....IT’S JUST A NO FOR RIGHT NOW......

#3rdly - BOB ENCOURAGES US TO REMEMBER THE APOSTLE PAUL AND WHETHER OUR PRAYER IS THE RIGHT

PRAYER TO PRAY.........

He asked three times for God to take away a “thorn in the flesh,” something that caused Paul much trouble

and frustration. But God said "no."

Why? Paul answered the question himself. Because the prayer was not right. Paul did not see–until God

pointed it out to him somehow–that his “thorn in the flesh” was being used by God for a purpose.

Sometimes the answer is "no" because the prayer itself is not right. Such instances call for surrender–and

revision. There may be a different prayer we need to pray instead.

SO MANY TIMES WHAT WE’RE REALLY PRAYING FOR IS FOR GOD TO SHOW US WHAT TO REALLY PRAY ABOUT, HOW

WE CAN FASHION OR RE-FASHION OUR PRAYERS TO HELP US BECOME FOLKS WHO CAN PRACTICE OUR FAITH

WITHOUT REALLY GIVING UP.....FOLKS WHO CAN SWITCH GEARS AND SEE GOD IS USING EVEN THE HARDEST

THINGS WE HAVE TO BEAR FOR A PURPOSE, JUST LIKE GOD USED PAUL’S THORN IN HIS FLESH.....HERE’S HOW

PAUL SUMMED IT UP:

2 Corinthians 12:8–10 NRSV

Three times I appealed to the Lord about this, that it would leave me, but he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities for the sake of Christ; for whenever I am weak, then I am strong.

JESUS OVERCAME GOD’S NO TOO

Jesus Himself prayed and heard God say, “No.” As you may remember, it was in the Garden of Gethsemane. Faced

with the pain, anguish, and torture of the cross, He cried out, “Abba, Father, everything is possible for you. Take this

cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will” (Mark 14:36). He made this urgent, passionate request not once

but three times. And yet, God refused to take the cup away. And Jesus submitted to His will.

IN THIS INTIMATE TRANSACTION BETWEEN PARENT AND CHILD WHO WOULD DARE TO SAY, GOD, WHY NOT? JESUS

WAS WORTHY TO RECEIVE THE DIVINE GRACE HE ASKED FOR.......JESUS CRIED OUT TO GOD IN DEEP ANGUISH AND

THE DISAPPOINTMENT OF HIS OWN DISCIPLES CHOOSING SLEEP OVER STAYING UP TO PRAY WITH HIM......

JESUS OVERCAME GOD’S NO WITH OBEDIENCE BECAUSE HE WAS MODELING THE KIND OF RESPONSE WE AS

BELIEVERS MUST RESOLVE TO MAKE WHEN GOD SAYS NO TO US..... “NOT MY WILL, BUT THY WILL BE DONE, O GOD”

THEOLOGIAN THABITI ANYABWILE SAID IT BEST:

Because the Father answered “No,” sinners have a High Priest perfectly intimate with all their weaknesses,

merciful and faithful.  We have One we can approach for grace.  Because the Father answered “No,” we have

one who stands between us in all our ungodliness and God in all His holiness to reconcile us and reunite us

as friends rather than rebels.  Because the Father answered “No,” those who have faith in Christ need never

fear the Father’s wrath again; His anger has been fully satisfied in the Son’s atonement.  Because the Father

said “No,” we stand assured that our acceptance with God happened on completely legitimate grounds–no

parlor tricks, no loopholes, no legal fiction, no injustice to threaten or question the exchange of our sin for

Jesus’ righteousness.  Because the Father said “No,” we will forever enjoy and share the glory of Father and

Son in unending, timeless age to come. I’m so glad the Father said “No.”

CONCLUSION

WE MAY NEVER BE HAPPY TO HAVE TO HEAR AND DEAL WITH A “NO” ANSWER OF ANY KIND, ESPECIALLY AS AN

ANSWER TO PRAYER.....WE MAY LIVE OUT OUR LIVES EVER TEMPTED TO HEAR OR EXPERIENCE THE ANSWER NO

ONLY TO SAY, “WHY NOT?”

ELIZABETH LAING THOMPSON WROTE WITH SUCH PASSION AND INSIGHT WHEN SHE WROTE:

No feels like a roadblock in the life path we wanted to take. The smaller roadblocks are inconvenient and

frustrating, but after a delay, we often find a way to work around them or reroute ourselves. But maybe

your roadblock towers to heaven and stretches for miles on either side—your very own Great Wall of China

—so you can’t peer around it. You can’t climb up to see what lies on the other side: a sheer drop or a smooth

road. And your roadblock is so wide, there’s no way around; you just have to hope you find a door passing

through. A gateway to the other side of no. As the old children’s rhyme goes, “Can’t go over it, can’t go

under it … gotta go through it.” Maybe you’re grappling with a big no—a before-and-after-everything-was-

different kind of no, an I-don’t-know-how-I’m-going-to-get-out-of-bed-ever-again kind of no: illness,

divorce, abandonment, betrayal, injury, death.

These nos don’t just break us in half; they can grind us to powder, burn us to ash. If we can’t fight our way to

the other side, we run the risk of losing not just our heads and our hope but also of losing our heart for God.

No one wants to go through no. No one wants to stand at that roadblock searching for a way through,

wondering what will be waiting on the other side when they get there. God has told me no many times in

my life—some nos have been small, their pain short-lived; others have been huge, their consequences life-

altering—and every no, major and minor, has left its mark.

We all have “no” stories: times when hopes flew and prayers pleaded—but God said no.

EVERY NO IS TOUGH TO BE SURE.......BUT I WANT TO CLOSE WITH THE ENCOURAGEMENT OF THE PSALMIST WHO

ADDRESSES SO MANY OF THE MOODS AND CHANGES, UPS AND DOWNS OF THE HUMAN SPIRIT.....AS WE PREPARE

TO COME TO THE COMMUNION TABLE TO REMEMBER OUR SAVIOR JESUS, MAY THE PSALMIST’S HEARTY DOSE OF

PERSPECTIVE COMFORT AND KEEP YOU EVEN WHEN GOD’S ANSWER IS NO.....

Psalm 31:14–15 (NRSV)

But I trust in you, O Lord;

I say, “You are my God.”

My times are in your hand;

ALL TIMES, HAPPY, SAD, STRETCHING, TESTING, HOPEFUL, WOEFUL, GRIEF-FILLED AND EXHILERATING.....ALL OUR

TIMES PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE AREN’T OURS ALONE, ALL OUR TIMES ARE IN GOD’S HANDS......

LET US PRAY.........